Long before the Spitflre, R J Mitchell was designing sleek monoplanes to win the Schneider Trophy. Ken Ellis describes a golden era
Calling the revellers to attention, the dapper and well-respected Jacques Schneider addressed his fellow countrymen at the Aéro- Club de France. It was December 12, 1912 and the gathering was honouring Jules Védrines, who had won the prestigious Gordon Bennett Aviation Cup in Chicago, USA, in a Deperdussin monoplane at 105mph (169km/h).
To rapturous applause, Schneider announced the founding of another race that could bring glory to France. Heir to the Le Creusotbased Schneider steel and armament empire, he had acquired a taste for powerboats and aircraft. A highspeed boating accident in 1911 left him with a shattered arm, but it did not diminish his passion for speed on and over the sea.
Schneider declared that in 1913 the annual motor boat extravaganza at Monaco would host the first Coupe d’Aviation Maritime. An impressive trophy depicting a scantily clad winged girl kissing the waves – she was nicknamed the Flying Flirt – was to be awarded. Unlike the Gordon Bennett race, this event reflected the interests of its benefactor; it was exclusively for hydravions – floatpla…
